Ford Neild November 16th, 2015
AP Biology Current Event 8
Lab-Grown Bones? They Could Make Painful Grafts History
The article “Lab-Grown Bones? They Could Make Painful Grafts History” by Nina Tandon describes one company's plan to redefine the way we heal bone injuries. Traditionally, the only way to heal bones injuries has been through bone transplant, however, the innovative start up, Epibone, claims they may have a new method for dealing with such issues. Transplants, either through donation are extremely painful and can cause a host of issues. If no donations are available, some patients will even resort to using animal bone. The problem all three of these method is, as tandon states “Unfortunately, the body is quite picky. Complications abound when the body rejects what it sees as a foreign object, leading to infections or defective transplants after these operations.” Obviously using another person's bone or another animal bone, for that matter, is very dangerous. An autograph is an operation where bone from a patient relocates their own bone to the area in need of bone. Unfortunately, as humans we have evolved to be very efficient and none of our bone is unnecessary. Thus, taking bone is very harmful even if it is your own. The article continues to elaborate on this by telling of Roger Ebert, a film director who lost his jaw bone to cancer. He underwent autograph and lost bone in his shoulder and his hip and, as a result, has suffered a lip his entire life. Epibone plans to fix this bone issues, not by taking bone from an outside source, but instead by growing it from the patient’s own cells. By doing so, Epibone is able to control the exact size and shape of the bone and ensure that the body will not reject it seeing as how it’s actually identical to the patient’s natural bone. The procedure for this is actually quite simple in theory. First, a CT scan of the damaged area creates a 3D image of the missing bone. Then using new advances in 3D printing a mold is printed for the new bone to grow. Next, a sample of fat cells from the patient can be harvested for stem cells, which have the ability to transform into any type of cell given the right conditions. Finally, the mold and the stem cells are placed a growing facility know as a bioreactive chamber where pH, temperature, humidity and nutrient composition are all precisely set to facilitate the growth of the bone. In three weeks, new bone will have grown to fit exactly into the missing section and is genetically identical to the patient's natural bone. In light of these exciting opportunities, it is important to note that this procedure is still fairly new as has yet to be tested on humans, however animal testing has reported complete success.
Many people do not know that, after blood, bone transplants are the most common transplant. As previously mentioned, current methods for bone transplantation often leave the donor scarred and are not a perfect fit for the patient. When the bone does not fit right, the new bone can become very fragile and with time can even further damage the normal bone around the injury. Millions of patients, present and future, have the potential to be relieved of their pain with this new technique. Personally, I went to a speech by the CEO of Epibone. She shared many personal stories of tragic bone injuries that could potentially be painlessly cured by her exciting new found methods. If these trails succeed, as they are expected to, not only will it have incredible medical significance, but also, as Tandon predicted, “we might also adapt cells to groundbreaking new uses in other realms of medicine, or even entirely different fields, such as architecture, art and fashion.” With all of these possibilities it’s impossible not to be excited for this method to see real life use.
This article was so well written, it’s difficult to find room for improvement. I found that Tandon explained this initially confusing and daunting method quite clearly and define many words for the reader such as “CT scan”, “bioreactive chamber” and “autograph.” Additionally, the ways she methodically moved through the procedure increased the digestibility of this topic. I felt that she may have benefitted from adding more information about the animal testing in order to give the methods for legitimacy. The lack of proof created a hint of doubt in the reader's mind concerning the efficacy of growing bone. All and all, this article was incredibly well written and I am excited to see what Epibone has in store for us.
Tandon, Nina. "Lab-Grown Bones? They Could Make Painful Grafts History." LiveScience.
TechMedia Network, 31 Aug. 2015. Web. 16 Nov. 2015. <http://www.livescience.com/52037-lab-grown-bones-could-replace-painful-grafts.html>.
Ford, this was a very interesting review to read. Your first paragraph review was very thoughtful and explained clearly how and why bone transplants are difficult. I also liked how you explained exactly how the new method worked so there was no confusion. I think your incorporation of several quotes into your entire review was very smart and added to the authenticity of the reflection. Lastly, I really enjoyed how you included your own personal connection to this particular topic; it allowed you to delve deeper into the content and truly show the reader your interest and why you chose this article.
ReplyDeleteAlthough your review was very informative, it could use some work. There are some grammatical errors throughout the piece where your sentence structure did not necessarily make sense (noun-verb agreement). Some proof reading would have made your argument and review even better. Also, I think you could have included a little more detail on stem cells and how effective they can be and where they come from. You mentioned that they come from fat cells, but I know that is not the only place. Are they dangerous? Some more research would clarify this.
I was initially drawn to this article because I was interested to read about a new surgical technique that had been proven to be extremely difficult in previous years. I was pleasantly surprised to read that there has been a new break through on how to complete bone transplants successfully. I was also surprised to read that bone transplants are the second most common transplant; I never would have guessed that! Overall, you wrote an exemplary review that was very interesting to read.
Tandon, Nina. "Lab-Grown Bones? They Could Make Painful Grafts History." LiveScience.
TechMedia Network, 31 Aug. 2015. Web. 16 Nov. 2015. .
Great review Ford! You gave a good summary-- it was cohesive and easy to understand, while also giving all the important information and covering all the points of the article. Additionally, your explanations were well written. I really understood the science behind bone transplants and how revolutionary this new discovery is. Another great point of your review was the second paragraph: it was a great addition that connected really well to the real world. The quote from an important scientist was a strong part that clarified the dangers of animal bone transplants.
ReplyDeleteWhile you had so many strengths in this review, there’s always something to work on! In your case, I think you could try to evaluate the source in your paragraph critiquing the article. Since the article was not from a well-known newsource like the New York Times for example, I think it would have bolstered the legitimacy of your review. Also, I think you could have gone more into depth about the other methods, like stem cells, which you briefly mentioned but then neglected to go into real detail about.
The most interesting thing to me in this article was just the idea of scientists growing bone in a laboratory! The process seems fascinating and something that could change the lives of hundreds of people that have suffered bone injuries. I hope that the scientists continue testing and that this technology someday becomes available for all people that need it.
Tandon, Nina. "Lab-Grown Bones? They Could Make Painful Grafts History." LiveScience.
TechMedia Network, 31 Aug. 2015. Web. 16 Nov. 2015. .
ReplyDeleteFord, I was immediately drawn to your current event report because the title of the article caught my eye. After reading your report, I was very interested in this topic and I think you did a great job summarizing the article and reporting on the important information. One aspect of your writing that I particularly enjoyed was how you introduced the ideas presented. This is a relatively new idea and advancement, so I assume most people do not know about it. Because of this, it is important to have a clear explanation which I think you stated very well. Another point that I enjoyed about your review was that you used some quotes directly from the author and article. I always think that these should be utilized because it can always make an argument or review stronger. You also weaved them into your summary very well and they did not seem out of place. A third thing that I liked about your review was the points you made in the importance paragraph of the review. I like how you used a personal connection because it gave the article an even more important purpose.
I think that overall you did a very good job reporting on your article, however, there are a few recommendations I would make in order for your report to be even stronger. One thing I would recommend to make this review stronger is that you include more of your opinion on the importance. You stated that you saw the author present a speech, so you do have a more personal connection than most would. Your review of this and more explanation on what you think would have made this extremely interesting. A second recommendation I would make to you is that you is that in your main summary paragraph include a little background information on either the scientists or author to raise the credibility of the article.
One thing that I found very interesting about your report was the number of lives that this research could change. I never knew or would have guessed that bone transplants are the second more common transplant. I did not know the scope of influence this would have. This changes my perception on the importance that this new technique could hold.
Ellie Briskin
ReplyDeleteCurrent event 8
Tandon, Nina. "Lab-Grown Bones? They Could Make Painful Grafts History." LiveScience. TechMedia Network, 31 Aug. 2015. Web. 16 Nov. 2015. .
Awesome job with this review, Ford! You summarized everything clearly and seemingly with ease, covering all of the main points of the article without including any extraneous details. Not only that, but you were able to establish a connection to how this topic affects human beings today, something that many people struggle with in these current events. This medical breakthrough could change medicine forever, and is more than applicable to all people, especially if a person or the person’s relative needs a bone transplant themselves. And really, any knowledge we can glean on the topic is a huge win for humankind and medical workers. Thirdly, your writing style was very easy to read and follow, yet remained extremely informative. This is an extremely hard quality to find in nonfiction writings, which are usually either much oversimplified or much overcomplicated; this hints at a real knack you have for writing intellectual reviews!
Ford, it's so hard to think of any area which could benefit from improvement! But if anything, you may benefit from some more outside information in general. I’m still not fully clear on how the scientists came across this development, and why they didn’t sooner, for I feel like there has been much talk about stem cells for many years and this would be something key to experimenting with from early on. Secondly, although the style itself was great, the professionalism of the article could have been improved by proofreading the writing to make sure all grammar mistakes are dealt with. Although the mistakes are not numerous and overall not too significant, better writing would have just legitimized your argument and made it stronger.
But on the whole, this review was astounding. Your writing and analysis blew me away. It really taught me a lot about the importance of stem cells and regeneration as a form of therapy and medical treatment, a topic I was aware of before but not very knowledgeable about. After reading this, I'll be sure to pay closer attention to medical advancements of this type, especially pertaining to bone replacement, 3D printing, and stem cells. Of course, this also forces me to remember that there is always room for improvement; why settle for the already outstanding feat of transplanting bone from one body to another when you can actually create your own bone?! Overall, I chose this article because of my lack of knowledge of the topic, and am extremely glad that this is the one I read. Thanks, Ford, for giving me such a great read!